SINGAPORE - Two new faces have appeared at the walkabouts of the Singapore People's Party (SPP), one a long-time opposition politician from another party and another a former press secretary to a minister.
The Straits Times understands that Mr Steve Chia, 47, formerly from the National Solidarity Party (NSP), and Mr Jose Raymond, 46, former Singapore Environment Council executive director and press secretary to Dr Vivian Balakrishnan, have joined the SPP.
A party member who spoke to ST said that Mr Chia, a former Non-Constituency Member of Parliament (NCMP), now sits on SPP's central executive committee as organising secretary.
Mr Raymond, who is completing his Master of Public Administration at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, joined SPP two months ago.
He has been involved in party activities in Potong Pasir SMC and Bishan-Toa Payoh Group Representation Constituency.
When contacted, both Mr Chia and Mr Raymond declined to comment.
A Facebook post on Thursday (Jan 18) showed photos of the men clad in party colours, joining other SPP members on walkabouts, including party chairman Lina Chiam.
Mr Chia, who joined the NSP in 1995, was an NCMP from 2002 to 2006.
Although he had indicated that he would likely contest in MacPherson for the 2015 General Elections, he abruptly dropped out of the polls, citing the emergence of a website that listed details about a 2003 nude photo scandal he was embroiled in.
Mr Raymond is a former journalist and press secretary to Dr Balakrishnan when he was Minister for the Environment and Water Resources.
He is the deputy chairman of the Chiam See Tong Sports Foundation, which aims to help youth from needy families through their participation in sports.
